The Phillies, the reigning NL East champions, have hit the bottom of MLB with eight games in a row, falling to an NL-worst 8-16. The team has scored the third-fewest runs in MLB, averaging just 3.42 per game. They have only scored four runs in any game during this eight-game streak. The pitching has been particularly poor, with Jesus Luzardo and Aaron Nola struggling with their respective ERA and Taijuan Walker being baseball's worst starter with a 9.13 ERA. Despite an attempt by manager Rob Thomson to rally the team's bats, they have not been able to turn their fortunes around.